Sabudana Khichadi Recipe

This is such a delightful recipe and another treasure from Maharashtrian cuisine. Sabudana Khichadi is often eaten when people maintain a religious fast and stay away from a lot of foods but it’s also eaten frequently as a breakfast dish or a fun snack thoughout the year and it just happens to be another favourite of mine.

What is Sabudana ?

Sabudana are little white balls or pearls that are popularly called Sago. It’s eaten in Maharashtra and many other parts of India as a khichadi or sometimes even deep fried into thicker almost donut like discs called vadas.

What is the difference between Sabudana Khichadi and Vada?

While both are made from sago or sabudana, the khichadi is when it’s cooked loose. The vada is when this is deep fried in a batter into balls and eaten hot with a chutney or relish. Both can actually be eaten with any form of chutney or relish but the main difference is one is cooked loose while the other is deep fried.

Recipe

Ingredients

1 Cup of Sabudana

A handful of Roasted Peanuts

10 – 14 Curry Leaves

A handful of chopped Coriander

2 Teaspoons of Cumin Seeds ( Jeera )

2 – 3 Boiled Potatoes

2 Teaspoons of Salt

3 – 4 Chopped Chillies

Method –

Soak the Sabudana pearls in water over night or atleast for 5 – 6 hours. Soak it in equal amounts of water or atleast till all the pearls are submerged in water.

Drain well and let all the water drip out and the sabudana dry completely.

In a mixer grinder or mortar and pestle grind the roasted peanuts till they are coarsely broken or perhaps even powdered slightly. Traditionally it’s ground to a powder form with a few chunks of peanuts but I like my Sabudana to have more chunky pieces.

In a vessel add oil and the boiled potatoes and let it cook for about 2 – 3 minutes. Salt the potatoes generously.

Add in the chopped chillies and cumin seeds and toss them for another 2 minutes. Then add in the curry leaves and after a minute or so add in the chopped roasted peanuts.

Make sure everything is well mixed and then add another teaspoon or so of salt before adding in the Sabudana pearls which have been drained and dried.

Mix well and cook for another 7 – 8 minutes till you notice the Sabudana start changing colour slightly. From bright white it will turn slightly translucent maybe a light grey. Add in a handful of chopped coriander and keep cooking till it all turns colour.

Turn off the flame and serve hot.

How To Serve Sabudana Khichadi ?

It can be eaten as is and doesn’t really need a special accompaniment but I like to eat it with either a spicy green chutney made from mint and chillies or perhaps a spicy red fiery garlic chilli chutney that is usually eaten with vada pav. It’s a basic Maharashtrian Lehsun chutney ( garlic Chutney ) which is a dry powder form and I eat it with nearly everything but it works well with this dish too.

Can I Freeze The Khichadi ?

Absolutely not. This recipe doesn’t store well nor does it re heat. It’s meant to be eaten fresh but at best it will stay in an air tight container for a couple of hours if you want to take it as a packed breakfast or lunch to work.

I do not recommend keeping it for longer than 6 hours or so. It’s best eaten when it’s freshly made nice and hot.

Variations For A Sabudana Khichadi

While the recipe I’ve shared is a traditional Maharashtrian style of making Sabudana Khichadi there are two ingredients that I’ve skipped out because I genuinely believe it doesn’t need it. The recipe also asked for a teaspoon of sugar to balance out the spice from the chillies along with some freshly squeezed lime/ lemon juice. I skip the sweet and tart and prefer the spice but feel free to add these as well.

My little twist to this recipe is to add a teaspoon or so of turmeric which gives the whole khichadi a unique taste and a nice yellow tinge. Turmeric is incredibly healthy and it’s unheard of in this recipe but that’s just my little tweak or variation and I think it’s wonderful ! Give it a try and let me know if you enjoyed it 🙂